Snowflakes
by CookiCutta
Summary: When Aurey first moved to Mindcrack, she didn't know what to expect. But she never thought she would be falling head-over-heels in love with a sweet man named Vechs. But, someone else wanted her love all for himself, and he was determined to get it, no matter what he had to do. Rated M for dark/mature stuff later on, but T for the rest (happy, fluffy, cutesy, VechsxAurey shipping)
1. Chapter 1: Innocent

A/N: Yay, noob writers unite! Well, I guess this isn't _technically _my first fic, but the last time I wrote one was around three years ago. And all of those fics lasted about three chapters. And for those of you who are now concerned, thinking that this teenaged girl won't be persistent, don't worry! I vow to complete this fic, no matter what (though if it is still continuing when school starts back up, updates will probably be less frequent). But this is officially my first Minecraft fic, first romance/ship fic, and first fic that actually uses people/characters that exist. So this will be interesting, and I apologize in advance for...whatever will need apologizing for.

Rating wise, I rated it M as a "cushion". I don't have all of the fic planned out, but if I do decide to include something that's outside of the T rating, then I don't feel pressured to dial it down. But I will put up a warning in the notes before the chapter(s) when there's something, but other than that, it will be T.

So yeah, welcome to Snowflakes! Let's hope this ship doesn't crash (like everything else I've written). Pun intended. Ah, I'll go now.

* * *

It was cold. No, cold is not a strong enough word to describe the weather in the kingdom of Mindcrack that bitter winter day. The sky was dark, covered with clouds, the sun seemingly nonexistent. In every direction, as far as the eye could see, was snow. It fell from the clouds endlessly, covering the wooden roofs, castle tops, and every tree, bush, and flower, coating the land in a soft, chilling white. Every farm was abandoned, the crops frozen and the animals long gone to seek better shelter within the harsh environment. The roads leading through Mindcrack were iced over and deserted, too hazardous for travel. That is how the extreme weather affected the land every year, so the residents were used to staying indoors during particularly nasty storms, but many continued work once the snow lightened up.

And one Mindcracker stared out her window, watching the snowflakes through holes in the coat of white plastered to the glass. She stared out at the white monster and listened to the howl of its strong white winds. She watched as the blizzard gradually died down, until the wind was a soft whisper and the flakes drifted slowly to the ground. A piece of wavy red hair fell in front of the Mindcracker's face, and she reached a hand up to tuck it back behind her ear as she continued watching the snow. She stared, mesmerized, as each flake fell to the ground to join the millions that fell before it. She had been living in the kingdom for a couple of weeks, and the snow still amazed her. Back in HermitCraft, the kingdom she had lived in prior to moving to Mindcrack, it hardly ever snowed, as the kingdom was much further south. And while she did enjoy much of the sunshine, she despised the sunburns that came with it.

She was suddenly pulled from her snowy daze when she heard the sound of feet crunching in the fresh powder. Out in the distance, barely visible, was a man slowly hobbling across the horizon, holding one arm. She couldn't tell who it was, but her inner nurturer kicked in, and she rose from her window sill. She quickly grabbed her scarf off of the hook by the door, and was greeted with a gust of freezing air as she rushed out the door, quickly wrapping her scarf around her neck and pulling it up and over her nose. She trudged slowly through the snow towards the man, who had fallen to his knees since she had left. As she inched closer, she saw that the man was dressed in stained gray overalls, a dark red hard hat, and green goggles. The wind had kicked up since she had left, blowing up the loose snow and making it difficult to see more than a few feet in front of her.

The man was still clutching his arm when she made it to him. He looked up at her, scarf ends and red cape flying furiously, tossed around in the wind like rag dolls. The man said something to her, but it was lost within the loud roar of the wind. She helped the man to his feet, pulling his good arm around her to support him.

"What happened to you?" she tried asking, but to no avail. Her voice was drowned out by the wind, unheard by the man. The pair trudged slowly back to her house, the journey taking twice as long as previously. When they had managed to stumble inside of the house, she assisted him to her living room couch, where he sat down. She immediately noticed the piece of red cloth wrapped around his arm, a few inches down from his elbow. It was soaked, with snow or blood, she couldn't tell, but she sat down next to the man and slowly peeled the drenched cloth from his skin, him wincing slightly as she did. Beneath the cloth was revealed to be a bloody wound, around 3 inches in diameter, and the sight almost caused her to gag. She quickly got up to get dressing from an emergency medical cabinet, and returned to find a small claret puddle on the polished wood floor. She began to carefully wrap the wound in the sterile bandages. When it had been properly dressed, and the small pool of blood dried up, she returned to sit down next to him.

"There. That's made with spider string, so it should hold until the wound heals." she said.

"Thank you, Aureylian." the man replied gratefully.

"H-How do you know my name?" Aureylian asked, surprised that he knew her, because he was certainly unfamiliar to her.

"The meeting where Guude introduced you to everyone. I was there, but I hung out in the background. Meetings and big group events have never really been my thing. My name's Vechs, by the way." the man answered.

"Okay, Vechs, what happened to you?" Aureylian questioned. Now that she thought about it, she vaguely remembered the man; he was hanging out in a corner with a zombie pigman, if her memory served.

"I was out in the woods chopping down trees when the blizzard started. It got dark, and monsters came out. I was fighting them off, but a skeleton managed to shoot me in the arm. At that point I fled, but I couldn't find my house in the snowstorm. So I stumbled through the blizzard, hoping to find someone's house, but at that point I had almost given up. And then, out of nowhere, you showed up and saved me, Aureylian."

"Well, I'm just glad you're okay," she said. "Oh, and you can call me Aurey." She smiled at Vechs. He returned the smile, and began to stand up. "Do you need any help getting home, Vechs?" she asked, standing up as well. She hadn't noticed it before, but he was a tall man, standing at least a foot over her.

"Sure, that would be great." he replied with a slightly awkward smile.

"Alright, just let me run upstairs and grab something." Aurey walked up to the second floor. Moments later, she returned with a deep blue scarf. She wrapped it around Vechs's neck, then retrieved her own scarf from the coffee table where she had cast it in a hurry to help Vechs.

They walked out the door side-by-side, greeted with cold air and the light fall of snowflakes. As they walked, Aurey held out her hand, a few flakes falling into her palm, but melting upon contact into small water droplets. Vechs watched with a small smile as she "caught" the little flurries. He found the display cute, and it warmed his heart to see her catching snowflakes in an almost child-like manner.

"You should try it, Vechs!" Aurey said as she reached both her hands out to catch the flakes. She paused and looked at him, expectantly, yet completely innocent at the same time. He complied, extending his good arm out in front of him. He smiled as the small crystals lightly dusted his hand when they landed, before melting into small beads of water. His smile widened as more landed into his palm. There was something about it; the sensation felt magical and joyous, yet calming at the same time. It was like becoming a care-free child again, not having to worry about anything else in the world. Aurey let out a small giggle as she started to twirl around, holding her arms out to catch the crystals. Then suddenly, she stumbled and fell backwards, the soft snow cushioning her fall. Vechs stopped, and looked at her worriedly.

"Aurey! Are you okay?" He knelt down beside her. She let out a laugh, and Vechs smiled. She stared up at the sky, where the clouds were slowly dropping snowflakes. She stuck out her tongue as one fell towards her face, and it instantly melted against her tongue. Vechs lied down next to her, grinning at the sky. He looked over as a snowflake fell on the tip of her nose, and he let out a small giggle.

"What?" Aurey turned and asked as she reached up to wipe the small water drop from her nose.

"The snowflake booped you." Vechs said with a smile. Aurey laughed, and then let out a happy sigh as she turned to look up at the sky again.

"I love the snow. It's just so beautiful. Every flake is so intricate, and no two of them are the same." Aurey said as she held out a hand.

"Yeah, it really is cool." replied Vechs. "No pun intended." he quickly added, which caused Aurey to grin. She sat up and pointed out at the horizon.

"Vechs, look!" she exclaimed. He sat up and looked out at the horizon. What he saw was one of the most beautiful sunsets he'd ever seen. The sky was dyed in stunning shades of red, orange and pink. The light spread outwards from the small half circle that was the sun, and cast the colors across the sky. They reflected off of the clouds, staining the bottoms in the same hues. The snowflakes that fell cast small beams of light of their own as they fell to the ground. Vechs sighed. If he could stop time and make this moment last forever, he would. Just pause this moment, let the rest of the world carry on, but leave him and Aurey here to stare at the gorgeous sight of the sun forever. But no matter how much he willed it not to, time persisted on, and carried him and Aurey with it. As the last light of the sun faded, suddenly dread struck Aurey's face.

"Vechs, we need to go before monsters come out!" She swiftly stood up, Vechs quick to follow. "Where's your house?" she asked, panic seeping out through her voice.

"This way, follow me!" Vechs said, taking off at a run. He mentally scolded himself as they ran. He got lost in the moment, and completely forgot about the approaching night. He checked behind him frequently for Aurey. When he glanced behind him again, beyond Aurey he saw pairs of beady red eyes poke through the darkness. He grabbed Aurey's hand as he made a sharp right turn, dodging a spider that lunged at them. He picked up speed as he led Aurey through a short series of turns, the two of them narrowly dodging skeleton arrows, zombies, and creeper explosions.

"Vechs, skeleton behind us!" Aurey shouted, and Vechs quickly looked around to check. Indeed, the white-boned monster was following them, bow in hand. It faintly glowed with a purple aura, showing that it was enchanted with Notch-knows-what. Vechs looked back around, relieved to find his house was only twenty blocks away. The skeleton loaded its weapon, and began to take aim at the people running. They ran with all they had, busting through the door just as the arrow was fired. Aurey swiftly slammed the door behind her, the arrowhead piercing the wood just as she closed it. She sighed with relief, leaning back against the stone wall, breathless. Vechs stood across from her, bent forward, his hands resting on his knees. He, too, was panting from the long run.

"Wow-That was-close." Vechs said, in between staggered breaths.

"Yeah—Too close." Aurey replied, just as winded. Suddenly, in between her body's cries for more air, a thought crossed her mind, and she panicked. "Vechs, how am I supposed to get home? I didn't bring any armor, or weapons, or even food because I didn't think we would be gone for all that long and-"

"It's okay, you can stay here for the night." He said, cutting her off. It was just as awkward for him to suggest as it was for her. If word got out into the city, the other Mindcrackers would _never _let that joke die. But it's not like she had a choice. It was either being mauled to death by zombies or sleeping with a guy she had just met that day.

"So you have an extra bed?" Aurey asked.

"Well, no, but I have a couch." he replied. He walked into his living room, Aurey following him.

It was a nicely decorated room, with pictures of him and the other Mindcrackers hanging on the walls. A small plant sat on a circular side table next to the couch. He flipped a switch, causing a small glowstone lamp to flicker on. The couch was made of a soft brown material, and hung over the back was a red and navy checkered blanket. The couch was big enough to comfortably fit one small person lying down, but just barely. Vechs sat down, Aurey following and sitting to his left. He took off his blue scarf, then held his hand out for Aurey's pink one. She removed hers and handed it to him. He then set both of them on the side table. He then removed his goggles and hard hat, revealing his dark, messy hair and stunning blue eyes. He grabbed a pillow from the right side of the couch, laid it between him and Aurey, and motioned for her to lie down. She did, her head resting against Vechs's side and her legs bending slightly to fit on the couch. He grabbed the blanket from behind her and spread it out, then gently laid it over Aurey. Within minutes, she was sleeping soundly.

Normally if Vechs had a guest over, he would let them have the small couch to themselves, but things were different with Aurey. She had clearly proved that she could handle herself, but at the same time, Vechs almost felt that he needed to protect her. One of his hands began to subconsciously stroke through her red hair as he sat in silent thought. _Maybe it's because she's so innocent. _ He thought to himself. _She's just so care-free, it's almost childlike. But I think it's wonderful that she is. _He smiled at the memories of the day: the snowflakes, the sunset, it was all so amazing. He dozed off with happy memories in his head, and his hand gently resting on Aurey's innocent, childlike cheek.

* * *

A/N: Well, congrats if you made it this far! I just hope that it wasn't as terrible as I think it was. Like I said, I am a newbie to this, so any and all criticisms are appreciated and welcome. And yes, I will answer this here and now: I'm making it more realistic then Mindcraft, whether it's for plot convenience or out of creativity is up for you to decide, but just know that giant poisonous spiders and sniper skeletons ARE dangerous. Be safe, kids. :)


	2. Chapter 2: Friends

A/N: Gah, I'm not extremely happy with how this turned out, hopefully it wasn't too awkward.

Enjoy...hopefully. :/

* * *

The sun was fairly low in the sky when Vechs awoke. He noticed a pain in his back almost immediately after, but couldn't remember the last time he awoke with back problems. And then he remembered. The snowflakes, the sunset, sleeping... and Aureylian. He looked over at the still-sleeping Aurey beside him. She brought a smile to his face. He gently reached over to move a strand of her red hair out of her face, and when his finger lightly brushed against her face, she was jolted awake, somehow startled by the light touch. She quickly sat up, scanned her surroundings, suddenly remembering yesterday's events.

"Good morning Relly, I hope you slept well." Vechs said. Aurey, slightly surprised at him calling her "Relly" looked over to the man sitting beside her. At first she said nothing, but then it dawned on her what happened the previous night. _I-I slept with him? Or did he sleep with me? _The thoughts raced chaotically around inside her head. From within her confusion, she was somehow able to form a response.

"Y-Yeah, I slept fine, I guess." _Didn't I just meet this guy yesterday? I would never sleep with someone I just met, would I? Well, not knowingly, anyways._

"Good to hear. I, on the other hand, slept sitting up on a couch, and now my back is killing me."

"Oh, I'm sorry." _So he slept with me, not the other way around. _Her mind entered self-defense mode, and she knew she had to get out away from Vechs immediately.

Vechs stood up to grab his hat and goggles from the table, as well as the pink scarf. He turned and handed Aurey's scarf to her as the rose from the couch.

"Do you want me to walk you home?" Vechs asked as he put on his goggles and straightened his hat.

"Uh, no thanks, it's fine." Aurey answered hastily, putting on her scarf. At her quick response, Vechs heart sank slightly, although he didn't recognize it immediately. As she walked to the door, Vechs followed her.

"Okay. Have a good day, Aurey. And if you ever want to come over and hang out, just knock because I'll probably be sitting here alone." Aurey let out a somewhat-convincing fake laugh at his joke, and Vechs smiled, unaware of her ruse.

"Yeah, I'll keep that in mind." And with that Aurey walked out. Vechs watched her walk away, and that's when he noticed the tiny sinking feeling in his chest. He closed the door slowly, and right before he shut it, he heard a voice call his name.

"Vechs, wait!" Aurey shouted as she returned. She hoped she wouldn't regret going back to confirm something, as it was too late to turn around and back out. He reopened the door and waited for her.

"Yes Aurey?"

"I just have one question: did you sleep with me last night?" She stared intently at him as she waited for his response. It was an awkward question, and at first he wasn't sure how to answer. Yes, he did _technically_ sleep with her, but it also wasn't like they made out the previous night.

"Well, I guess you could say that I did sleep with you, yes. But what happened is you sat down with me, then fell asleep next to me, and I didn't want to disturb you by getting up." His statement was true except for the last part, but he was unsure how she would take 'Oh, I thought you needed protecting so I slept with you.', so he changed the wording of it.

"Oh, okay. Well, bye, for real this time." she said. And this time, no matter how much he willed her to, she didn't come back. He closed the wooden door, then went to go sit on the couch and pondered his thoughts. _Did that upset her that much? Did _I _upset her that much?_

On the way back to her own house, Aurey decided to make a trip to spawn. The center of the Mindcrack kingdom, often referred to as spawn, was where most of the action happened. Many shops were located at spawn, as well as the plaza for meetings and even some people's houses. Despite there being no grand entrance, it was easy to tell when you had entered spawn, as it was much more crowded than the rest of the kingdom, both in people and in architecture. Aurey was in a daze as she walked the snow-covered cobbles, lost inside the events of the previous day. So when someone called her name, she didn't hear it at first. Lost in thought, she was wrenched back into reality by a hand on her shoulder. She turned, her expression showing her shock, but her face instantaneously relaxed when she saw the brown clothes and concerned face of the man standing next to her.

"Aurey! You looked like you were worrying about something, is everything alright?"

"Yes, Sev, everything's fine. Just thinking, was all." She replied. Sevadus's face relaxed and he dropped his hand from her shoulder.

"Okay, good. I checked by your house this morning, but you weren't there, and I got concerned." Aurey's eyebrows lifted quizzically at his statement.

"What were you doing at my house this morning?"

"Um, uh, well..." he stuttered, caught off guard by the question. He didn't think this one through very well, and kicked himself for bringing it up with her. As he fumbled for an answer, he saw Aurey's brow knit itself skeptically. She crossed her arms as she waited for the rest of his response. Finally Sev spat out the first thing that came to his mind. "T-That's beside the point isn't it?" It wasn't exactly an answer to the question, in fact it didn't answer her question in the slightest, but she seemed to accept it all the same.

"Okay, whatever." Sevadus was one of Aurey's first (and best) friends on the Mindcrack, so she trusted him well enough. She continued walking, Sev matching her pace as he walked alongside her.

"So what brings you to spawn?" Sev asked, fed up with the silence that had formed between them.

"To be honest, I let my legs wander, and they brought me here. I just needed a place to think, to get away from the world. And I guess spawn isn't exactly the right place for it." Aurey said with a slight shrug. "What with it never being completely empty."

"You're right about that." He answered with a small chuckle and a smile. The pair fell into a silent walk as they passed the many buildings in spawn. When they arrived at the statue construction site, they stopped to look at the rows of statues, which were modeled to look like the residents of Mindcrack. When Sev saw an angry zombie pig man pacing by one of the statues, specifically Etho's, realization struck his mind, and his face contorted, his eyes widened and his mouth twisted itself into a small, panicked frown.

"Oh shoot, Aurey, I have to go. I promised I would help Zisteau add finishing touches to the statues today, so I'll see you later." He sputtered out hurriedly. Before Aurey had a chance to react, Sevadus took off running towards Zisteau. She watched as Sev was briefly scolded by Zisteau before being put to work on Etho's statue. Happy to finally have some time to herself to think, Aurey began the journey home, pondering what had happened between her and Vechs.

That night, Aurey laid awake in bed, unable to fall asleep. She stared up at the wooden ceiling above her, thoughts racing around her brain. Positive that she wouldn't be able to fall asleep until her thoughts had been laid to rest, she sat up in her bed. Sure, she was mad—frustrated?-upset?—with Vechs for sleeping with her, and used that as an excuse to justify her rude way of leaving him that morning. But the more she thought about it, the less she thought it was truly justified. He _did _invite her to stay when she had nowhere else to go, and it wasn't like he planned for it to happen the way it did. If anything, the whole ordeal was _her _fault; she got distracted and lost track of time, and if anything, he saved her from what was likely to be certain death in the pitch-black night.

Once she had made this realization, a pang of guilt struck her. She felt bad for how she treated him, especially after he had shown her kindness. He seemed like a very nice person, and she decided to give him a second chance. She would go and apologize to him the next day. Content that she had finally soothed her thoughts, she fell backwards onto her pillow with a small smile. Sleep came much more easily, and she found herself drifting off within minutes.

Suddenly, she was jerked awake by a loud noise. It sounded almost like a man's voice, but in her half-asleep state, she couldn't be certain. She stood up, lighting a torch. She peeked out of her window, and other than a few pairs of bright red eyes lurking in the night, she saw nothing suspicious. She walked downstairs, looking out of her large window. Seeing nothing again, she opened her door and stepped out onto the wooden porch. After scanning the area for nearby creatures and deeming it secure, she was about to go back to bed when she heard a rustle in the bushes. She peered in, holding the torch out to shine light into the hedge the noise had come from. After finding nothing, she went back inside, extinguishing the torch once she had reached her bedroom. She climbed into bed and this time, she was able to fall asleep undisturbed.

Meanwhile, in the bushes down below, an unseen man let out a relieved sigh. Had Aurey checked the bush one further to the right, he was sure he would have been found out. Luckily for him, she didn't, and reasoning that he cut it too close for comfort, he fled off into the night, slaying monsters as he went, the tip of his diamond sword flashing in the moonlight.


	3. Chapter 3: Apology

A/N: Gah, sorry this is out late, I had a busy weekend, not much time to write. (Since I don't think I said it, I have a schedule of when I should post each chapter, based on how long/how difficult I think it will be to write, and for most chapters there is a gap of 2-4 days.)

* * *

Vechs awoke the next morning to a knock at his door. At first, he was unsure if he imagined it, but when it came again, slightly louder, he was almost positive it was genuine. Groggily, he rose out of his bed, rubbing his eyes. He had no clue who would visit him that early in the morning, but he figured whoever it was either had a good reason or just didn't sleep at night. He carefully walked up the stairs, not wanting to trip (he had done that many times before, and it was a very unpleasant experience). The knock on his wooden door came again, this time right as he reached the top step. When he opened the door, his brows rose in surprise at who he saw standing in front of him.

"Hey, can we talk?" Aureylian said. Vechs had a multitude of questions he wanted to ask her, but he refrained, at least for the time being.

"Yeah, sure, come inside." He stepped to the side and let her into the house, shutting the door behind her. She followed him to the couch and they sat down together, each seeming to take a side of the couch, putting as much distance between them as possible. "So, what did you want to talk about?" He inquired, genuinely curious.

"I, uh, just wanted to apologize for yesterday. I was really rude, and I had no reason to be, so I'm sorry." Vechs wasn't sure how to reply. To him, she didn't exactly come off as rude; she seemed more freaked out about the fact that she had slept with a man she just met. But he appreciated the thought nonetheless. He found it sweet of her, almost like she cared about him. And he liked it, the warm, fuzzy feeling he got inside when she smiled, when she spoke, when she giggled or laughed. But clearly seeing that she was still warming up to him, he kept his feelings private.

"Um, okay." was all that he could think to say. But she smiled slightly, taking his response as an "apology accepted", more or less, so he figured he must've said something right, even though he was completely lost. "So, are we friends now?" he asked.

"Yeah, we're friends." She replied with a smile. There it was again, that feeling that set butterflies off in his stomach and made his heart do loop-de-loops. He felt a lump form in his throat when he tried to respond, so instead of trying to overcome it, the two sat in a rather awkward silence for an eternity.

They both attempted to break it at the same time, and ended up simultaneously saying "so". Vechs let out a small laugh, and Aurey giggled. After the laughter had been replaced with stillness, Aurey spoke up again, but this time she went uninterrupted.

"I, uh, should probably go." She said. As she rose to get off the couch, Vechs felt a familiar sinking feeling in his heart. He remembered it from the previous day, and it occurred when Aurey left that day as well. He rose to escort her out, a strong sense of déjà vu setting in. He opened the door for her, a smile was given and a thank you was said, and she walked out of the door. All of a sudden, Vechs reached out to grab her shoulder.

"Wait, Aurey, hold on for a second." He removed his hand as she pivoted around to face him.

"Yes, Vechs?"

"Uh, you're welcome to come by whenever you want, since we're friends and all now." He stammered out.

"Oh, okay, that sounds great; I might stop by when I get the chance."

"Yeah, I'll see you then."

"Bye, Vechs."

"Y-Yeah, bye to you too." He stuttered, a mix of emotions flowing through him and a hundred thoughts racing and bouncing about inside his skull. Aurey waved to him before finally turning and walking away. Caught in a daze, he didn't close the door until a cold draft flew in, drawing him back to reality and causing goose bumps to creep up his arms. He leaned his back against the door, and then slid downwards into a sitting position, letting his thoughts consume him.

_What is happening to me? Why do I want to see Aurey as much as possible? Could I possibly—no, I don't—do I? If I didn't, why does just hearing her voice, her laugh, seeing her smile, why do they make me so happy? And why does being away from her leave a hole inside of me? _

"I just don't know anymore!" he yelled, banging his fists against the floor. He immediately regretted it, and winced as his hands slammed into the stone floor, struggling to hold back profanities. They instantly became red, and a sharp, stinging sensation shot up his hand and into his wrists. He stood up, cringing as he put pressure on his hands to do so. He quickly scanned them over, and after deeming he had done no real harm to them, went to sit on the couch, where he could bang his fists in frustration without causing himself severe pain. And in a small corner deep within his mind, he felt that if Aurey would have been there, everything would've been better.

* * *

Aurey almost couldn't believe what she was doing as snow began to lightly fall. Five days ago, she didn't even know him. Four days ago she slept with him. And three days ago, she and he became "friends". So she couldn't believe that after their rough history, she was going to his house today. But she promised herself to give him another chance, and in doing so, she soon found herself knocking at his door. The door swung back with a squeak.

"Hello, Aurey." He stepped to the side to let her in.

"Hey, Vechs, thanks for inviting me over." She replied as she walked through the doorway. He shut the door behind her. "So, what do you have planned?"

"Uh, um..." He hadn't planned anything specific for her arrival; he figured they would just hang out. He quickly racked his brain to find something for them to do, stuttering out the first thing that came to his mind. "Well, first I wanted to show you around."

"Okay, that sounds cool." She replied. He began showing her through his living room, kitchen, and his secret library. When he started to walk downstairs to show her his bedroom, however, she was hesitant to follow him.

"Why would you sleep in your basement?"

"I like the privacy it gives me. Sometimes you just want to be alone, and during those times is when I go downstairs." Even though Aurey had agreed to give him a chance, she didn't know how comfortable she felt following him into a secluded basement where he slept. And his answer to her question didn't exactly help, either. _No, Aurey, stop being so skeptical. You said you would give him a second chance, and he hasn't done anything for you to be distrustful of him, _she thought as she shook the suspicions from her mind.

"Okay, that makes sense." She replied as she took a hesitant step forward, which was followed by another, then another, and eventually she found herself following him down the staircase. The way down was unlit, and as they stepped down the last stair, a small clicking noise was made when they activated the stone pressure plate. Then, the glow stone lining the walls lit up in a line, illuminating the room. It was a relatively basic bedroom, with a small wooden desk and chair, bookshelf, and a neat bed tucked away into the corner. The walls, ceiling, and floor were all made from stone (it only took an umpteen number of middle-of-the-night falls, and an equal amount of bruises and bumps for Vechs to begin the sacred practice of sleeping in the middle of the bed).

"And that's the end of the tour. Any questions?" he asked with a small smile, as if he was a professional tour guide. Aurey smiled back at him, and a silence rose between them, only to be broken with the two of them saying "so" at the same time, followed by light giggles from Aurey.

"I'll take that as a no, then. But I do have a lunch set up outside, if you want to join me." he said as he began to walk back up the stairs. Aurey followed him outside and around to the back of the house. A small blanket was laid out, with a wooden basket sitting in the middle. The two of them sat down, the basket between them. Vechs pulled out two sandwiches wrapped in plastic, handing one to Aurey before closing it back up.

Once the sandwiches were gone, the two leaned against the stone, facing off into the distance. They watched as the snow fell. Every few minutes, Vechs would sneak a side glance at Aurey. One time after he had thought he had been caught (or she had been doing the same thing, he wasn't sure which), he dared to steal another glance, but he was greeted with a ball of snow. It was cold, and he immediately reached up to wipe it off of his face. In front of him was an innocently grinning Aurey, hands held suspiciously behind her back.

"Aurey! What did you do that for?" he asked, feigning anger. Aurey caught on to his ruse, and continued the joke.

"Do what? I have no idea where that snow came from, if that's what you're talking about."

"Well, then I have no idea where this came from either!" he replied as he threw a snowball of his own. Aurey turned at the last second, causing the ball hit her back. She quickly stood up, ducking around the corner of the house, snowball in hand. Vechs quickly made a small stack of his own, then got up to check around the corner Aurey had disappeared around just moments ago. As he poked his head around, something cold hit his back, and he jerked around, snowball at the ready. He saw a flash of red vanish around the corner, and he threw the snow at it. He missed, and the ball landed with a soft crunch into the snow. He went to pick up one of his snowballs, but soon found that they had been taken. He quickly made another, checked behind him, and then slowly, quietly moved forward. He stopped once he reached the corner, listening for signs of her. He heard the crunching of footsteps, and he jumped out, snowball at the ready.

He didn't expect for Aurey to be right around the corner as well, and soon found his face within inches of hers. He stopped, hand frozen in the air. Aurey had been slightly taken aback as well, but she recovered soon enough to peg Vechs in the chest with a snowball. The hit snapped him back into reality, and he fired his snowball at her, hitting her square on the side as she turned to run. He followed after her. He had almost caught up with her when she suddenly lost her footing and went tumbling to the ground, head-over-heels. Vechs struggled to keep from tripping over her, but his efforts proved ineffective. He lost his footing, and landed on top of her. He caught himself with his hands, which landed on either side of her head, and his knees, which straddled her waist. They stared at each other, breathing heavily from the chase. The awkwardness of the situation set in, and Vechs quickly got off of her, sitting next to her, his face colored like a ripe tomato. She sat up and avoided looking at him, her cheeks colored as well.

_Well, now you've done it. Blown any possible chances with her, all because of some weird accident. Why'd you have to be so clumsy? _They sat in an embarrassed silence the only sound the quiet whistle of the wind. Vechs watched as Aurey reached out to catch a snowflake. _Now might be the last chance you get to talk to her, so make it worth something._

"Hey, Aurey?" he asked. She looked over at him, expression unchanging. "Uh, I just wanted to say sorry for, um, tripping over you." He avoided the awkward part, but there was nothing he could've done, and he felt it would have been even more awkward had he brought it up. _Some things are better left unsaid and forgotten about. _He thought to himself, though the memory was almost instantly etched into his brain, wedging itself deep into his memory.

"It's fine." She said plainly. Vechs hoped he hadn't just made it worse, though that would be rather difficult. A still quiet soon took over them. The silence lasted an eternity, and each was hoping that the other broke it. Eventually, Aurey gave in. "Vechs, can I tell you something?" He turned to her in curiosity. "I just want to say that I've never told anyone this before—" She paused as she caught a snowflake.

"Yes?"

"Well, sometimes when I'm looking at out the snow, I get really deep in thought. And the other day, I realized that we aren't all that different. Humans and the snow, I mean." She quickly corrected as Vechs smiled. "Anyways, when you think about it, we really are almost the same. Every person is different, and so is every snowflake. And you could even say that when snow falls, it's like our lives. Some are ended before they can live up to their full potential—" She caught a few flakes to demonstrate. "But many finish their lives happily and peacefully." She finished.

Vechs just stared at her in awe. It was an odd comparison, but once it was explained, the resemblance was chillingly uncanny. He directed his gaze to the clouds, where flake upon flake of snow fell towards the ground. A shiver went up his spine as he imagined him and Aurey as snowflakes. With every second they got ever-closer to the inevitable end. He focused on two snowflakes floating side-by-side. He watched as they drifted slowly to the ground. Suddenly, Aurey caught one of the snowflakes he had been watching, but quickly released it, allowing it to fall to the ground and join the billions of others that had done so before it. As she opened her hand, Vechs's other snowflake floated into it, but she released that one as well.

"W-Where did you come up with that?"

"Like I said, I just got really deep into thought one day." Vechs was surprised with Aurey. He had never known her to have such a symbolical thinking side; she had always been rather silly, but that side of her personality matched with his perfectly. And although he was stunned at her "alter ego", it was pleasantly so; he actually liked it.

As he and Aurey looked up to the sky, a thought struck Aurey's mind. She stood up, which got his attention. He quickly followed her.

"Where are you going?" He asked as she began to walk away. She turned at his voice.

"It's going to get dark soon, I need to get home." Vechs looked out to the west, and his heart fell as the sun crept slowly towards the horizon.

"Oh, okay. Do you want me to walk with you?"

"No, it's fine. And don't you remember what happened the last time we walked home together?" Of course he remembered. He held back a smile at the memory. Obviously, she wasn't fond of it, even though he had enjoyed it, in all honesty.

"Yeah. So I'll see you later then."

"Yeah, you will. Today was a lot of fun, thanks for inviting me over. And if you ever want to stop by my place, feel free to do so." And with that, she walked off.

By the time she arrived, the sun had made it about half way down. She noticed the corner of a piece of paper sticking out of her mailbox. She opened it, and a letter fell to the ground. She picked it up and opened it. Inside was a piece a paper, folded into thirds.

_Dear Aureylian,_

_Hello, this is Etho. I have a mission, of sorts, for you to complete. I also hired Sevadus to help you, since it is a rather large job. I can't give out the details for it, since I'm not entirely sure I mailed this to the right address, but I need you to meet me at spawn in three days. That is, if you are willing to help me out with this._

_-Etho_

She walked inside with the letter in hand. She set it on her nightstand as she fell onto her bed, her tiredness catching up to her. And within minutes, she was sleeping soundly.

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A/N: I will award 10 adorabolical points to whoever guess where the foreshadowing in this chapter is. :P


	4. Chapter 4: Grand Theft String

A/N: Meh, I'm pretty happy with how this came out. Though, I guess rewriting an episode is easy enough. :/ Ah well, hope you enjoy. :)

* * *

"Aurey!" The voice of Sev greeted her as she walked towards him and Etho, who had been waiting for her to arrive.

"Hey Sev; Etho." She said as she joined their small group. She then turned to Etho. "So, what exactly are we doing for you? The letter you sent wasn't very descriptive."

"Ah, yes. I need you two to gather string for me. Three or four boxes should be sufficient-"

"Three or four _boxes?! _That's insane, how are we supposed to get that much string in a day?" Sev interjected, a look of bewilderment on his face. Aurey was also surprised at this number. No wonder Etho had asked them to do it; he wasn't kidding in his letter when he said "a rather large job".

"Yes, I need the string for a project I've been working on. Now, as for how you get the string, any..._questionable _means are acceptable, by my standards. And as long as you two keep your heads down and deny everything, so will I, got it?" They nodded their heads in agreement. "Good. Meet me back here in three hours with the string." He walked off, leaving the two alone. Sev called out after him.

"_What? _ We only have three hours?!" He started to storm after Etho, but he was stopped by a hand on his shoulder.

"Don't, Sev. You did agree to do it." She dropped her hand as he sighed.

"Yeah, but at the time I didn't know that we would be gathering an absurd amount of string for him."

"Okay, I guess I can't argue with the fact that the letter was vague." She replied.

"And what would he even do with all that string, anyways?" Aurey had no answer to that. She was wondering the same thing herself, but there was no way to know, at least for now. As she began to walk off, Sev following her, what Etho said replayed in her mind. _"Now, as for how you get the string, any..._questionable _means are acceptable, by my standards._" Was he implying that they steal it from someone?

"Sev, do you have any idea as to how we're going to get the string?" He stopped, tossing the question and Etho's words around.

"It seemed to me he was trying to hint at taking some from someone, but who would just have that much string lying around?" So she wasn't reading into his words too much; Sev thought the same thing. "Maybe we should just go around to a bunch of people and get some?"

"It's worth a shot." They continued walking, stopping at any unguarded chests they found, most of which were leftovers from projects that people had left there. Spawn was rather empty that day, which also gave them an advantage. After an hour of searching, they had looked over most of the chests in the middle of the city.

"Are you kidding me, we only have a single box of string after all of that?" Sev exclaimed. "There's no way we can get the rest in two hours." He sighed, taking a seat on a nearby rock.

"We could always check the houses outside of spawn." Aurey was doubtful they would come up with enough string, but she figured it was worth a try. Sev looked up at her suggestion.

"Whatever you say, Aurey." He rose up off the rock. "So where are we looking first?"

"How about my house? I'm sure I've got some string lying around somewhere." Sev nodded, and the pair began the walk to Aurey's house.

When they arrived, they entered the house. Aurey began scavenging her storage room for string, and after a thorough search, managed to add about a quarter of a box of string to their total. Sev had been surprised at how much string Aurey managed to come up with, as it was by far more than they had gotten from any other person. They left her house, continuing in a random direction.

"So where are we going now?" At first, Aurey had thought she had just picked a random direction, but Sev's question made her realize that she had somehow subconsciously chosen the direction of Vechs's house.

"Well, we could just continue in a circle. And I think if we go this way, we'll get to Vechs's house next." At the mention of Vechs, Aurey thought she saw Sev's brow twitch into a scowl, but the movement was so small, she could've imagined it.

"Okay, then." The two continued until they came across a large stone structure. It seemed as if nobody was home, so they walked inside. Aurey flicked on a glow stone lamp, causing the pitch blackness to fade away. She headed off in the direction of his storage room, Sev following her. As they walked down the ladder into the storage cellar, a question popped into Sev's mind.

"Aurey, how exactly did you know where he keeps all of his stuff?" She ignored the question as she climbed down. When they hit the floor, Aurey turned on another small lamp. It shed light into the room, and the chests upon chests within it.

"Start looking." As they began to search, Aurey felt a small pain inside her chest. She knew it was wrong to be searching through her friend's stuff, but she was sure he would understand. And she made a mental note to pay him back for whatever they took. But even after she had settled the problem, the pain didn't recede. No, it wasn't stealing from her friend that bothered her. She absentmindedly searched for string as she racked her brain for the real problem. Then, it hit her. It was more than stealing from her friend. Or rather, she thought of him as more than a friend. A soft smile found its way onto her face. She liked Vechs. For how long, she didn't know, but now that she was aware of her feelings for him, she was even more confused. The pain melted into guilt, and she immediately regretted coming. Just as she began to ponder how she would convince Sev to leave, she heard his voice.

"Aurey, look what I just found!" He motioned for Aurey to come over. Inside the chest was a huge stash of string, easily the last three boxes they needed, and extra. Sev began to pull it out and dump it into boxes, and within minutes, the pair had all four boxes of string.

"Alright, let's get out of here now." Aurey took another peek into the chest they had just raided. There wasn't much string left, and she knew Vechs would notice the minute he looked into it. "Aurey, come on, we have all the string we need, let's go." He ushered her as he stood by the ladder, string boxes in hand.

"Hold on, there's something I need to do." She quickly rummaged through the chests for a pen and piece of paper. Leaning against one of the chests, she began writing a note. The pen died part way through the note, and she replaced the pen before digging around to find another.

"Aurey! Etho told us to keep our heads down!" He hissed as she pulled out a pen. She continued writing the note, proofreading it when she had finished. She had never been very good at flirting, but it was worth a shot. She folded the note into quarters and wrote his name on it before putting the pen back and turning to respond to Sev.

"I know, but just trust me on this." They walked up the ladder and out of the house, Aurey turning of the lights as they went. She closed the door with a squeak, and quickly tied the note to the door handle.

When they arrived back at spawn, Etho was waiting for them.

"We brought your string." Sev said as he dropped the boxes onto the ground. Etho opened the top one and his eyebrows rose at the sight of the string.

"Yes, this will do very nicely. This should be more than enough string for my project, thank you."

"Etho, what exactly do you need all of this string for?" Aurey inquired.

"Well, um, you see, I uh, well..." He struggled to find the words. "Oh yes! I need it for s-some craft project I'm working on. Yes, that's it." Neither one of them bought the "Arts and Crafts Master Etho" story, but they figured it wasn't worth it to argue. "Well now, Sev, would you help me carry this string back to my lab?" He picked up two boxes and began walking. Sev picked up the others and gave a nod of farewell to Aurey. She began her journey home, tired from hunting for string the entire day.

As Vechs opened his door, he noticed a small piece of paper tied to it, addressed to him. He untied it and walked inside, closing the door behind him. He turned on the lamp with a small click, took off his hat and goggles, and sat down on the couch. He opened the note, curious to see what it held.

_Dear VechyPoo,_

_I had to borrow some string and you weren't home, so I hope you don't mind. I'll pay you back whenever you want me to, okay?_

_Love,_

_Rel-Rel_

She signed with a small heart at the end of her name. The note brought a smile to Vechs's face, along with many thoughts. He didn't mind that she had borrowed something from him, and since it was just string, he wasn't in dire need of a refund. _But VechyPoo? Where did that come from? She's not...Nah, she couldn't be flirting with me—Could she? _


	5. Chapter 5: Derps Need Doctors

Vechs awoke with a knot in his back. He had fallen asleep on the couch, laying in an awkward half-sitting and half-lying down position. He sat up and rubbed his eyes. The sun was shining in brightly from his window. The note from Aurey was still tightly clasped by his hand. He laid the crinkled paper out on the table, smoothing it out a few times before standing up. He stared out the window for a couple of minutes before realizing how late in the day it was. The sun was almost directly above his house, and as he turned, the note caught his eye, and alarm struck his face.

He was supposed to meet Aurey that morning, and he had overslept. He turned on his heel to grab his hat and goggles, yanking his scarf off the hook as he left the house, slamming the door in his haste. The strong wind nearly blew the blue fabric out of his hands, but he quickly secured it around his neck, pulling it up to cover his nose and mouth.

He made it to Aurey's house in record time, hastened by both the nearing storm and by his desire to not be any later than he already was. He knocked, and Aurey quickly answered. Her eyes widened at the sight of him.

"Vechs! What are you doing?" She quickly ushered him inside, closing the door behind him. He pulled the scarf down off of his face.

"Well, I overslept and I didn't want you to think I blew you off today, so I came." He said, slightly embarrassed.

"Didn't you check the weather?" As if to prove her point, the wind kicked up and blasted the window.

"Um, no, sorry." He said sheepishly. Aurey sighed at his response.

"Well, you should've checked, you could've gotten caught in a storm again." She scolded him. She was reminded of what happened the day she met him. She didn't want a repeat of that day. Worry struck her thoughts he she realized that she could've lost him, if he had left any later. Just looking at him standing in front of her relieved her worry, though. Her thoughts were interrupted when he pointed out at her neck. She looked down, remembering she was still wearing her scarf.

"Wait, were _you _going to go out there?"

"Well, I was planning on going out to get lunch, but then this storm came in." She replied as she walked to the window. "And by the looks of it, we're stuck here, so you might as well make yourself comfortable, since it might be a while." She finished, walking away from the window, hanging up her scarf as she did. Vechs took off his scarf, hung it on the hook, and followed her. He stopped at the couch as she continued into the kitchen. She quickly poked her head out when she realized he was no longer following her. "If you want to come help make lunch, you can." She stood, waiting for his response.

"I'm not much of a cook, but okay." He said, following her into the kitchen. She smiled.

"That's okay, I'll teach you." She began pulling out assorted utensils, tools and food from cabinets and shelves. She laid out a cutting board with a knife and assorted vegetables. Vechs picked up a cucumber, examining it.

"Where did you get this? I thought all the crops died a long time ago."

"Oh, those were a welcoming gift from Baj. He sent me a gift basket with all kinds of vegetables, and I still haven't finished them all." Vechs smiled. It wasn't unlike "farmer" Baj to send people crops he grew. Vechs figured he had some type of secret stash of crops somewhere, though he had yet to prove his theory. "You can slice those up if you want." She said as she began digging for a pot. Vechs set down the cucumber on the cutting board. It began rolling, and he caught it right before it fell onto the floor. Vegetable in one hand, he picked up the knife and began slicing. It was a slow process, and many of the slices were crooked and unevenly sliced.

"If you don't mind me asking, what exactly are we making?" He stopped chopping to watch as Aurey added an assortment of herbs and seasonings to the pot. She turned to him when she had finished.

"Tomato soup with a salad." She answered as she walked over to see how Vechs was doing. He had cut up three quarters of a single cucumber in the time she had prepared and started to cook everything for the soup. He was clearly trying his best, so she decided to help him. "Here," she said as she stepped next to him. She grabbed a green pepper and placed it on the cutting board. She gently put her hands over his, taking control of them, him letting her. She slowly began cutting, placing the tip of the knife on the cutting board and bringing the blade onto the vegetable, creating a clean slice. She slowly pushed the unsliced pepper towards the other side of the board as she continued making the cutting motions. After half of the pepper had been sliced, she picked up her hands and smiled up at Vechs as he continued cutting. He gave a smile in return, and Aurey returned to the soup. Within minutes, all of the vegetables had been cut and placed into a bowl, where Aurey carefully tossed the salad. As she tossed, she asked Vechs to check on the soup.

"Well, it looks red." He said, clueless as to what he was supposed to be checking for. Aurey suppressed a giggle, feeling that he wasn't trying to make a joke.

"Could you add a spoon of that into it, and stir it up a little?" She asked, pointing at a small jar of shredded cheese. He did so, setting the spoon down on the counter when he finished. When Aurey had finished tossing the salad, she carried the bowl to the table in the other room. "The soup's probably ready; you can bring it in here." She called out.

"Okay, I got it." He replied as he picked up the pot. He did not use the handles, however, and when the sweltering metal came into contact with his hands, he instinctively dropped it with a yell, rushing to the sink. There was a loud clang as the pot fell onto the floor, splattering soup everywhere. Aurey came running into the kitchen, gasping at the sight. Her entire kitchen was covered in tomato. The soup ran down the walls, adding to the mess on the floor and countertops. She moved to Vechs, who was running cold water over his burnt hands.

"Oh my gosh, Vechs! What did you do?" She gently grabbed his wrists and turned his hands over, examining them. He winced as she removed them, the pain intensifying. The backs of his hand looked unharmed, but his palms were a bright red.

"I tried to pick up the pot like you told me to." He answered as Aurey put his hands back under the water.

"You didn't grab the handles, did you?" His lack of reply told her all she needed to know. She sighed, grabbing a soft sponge from the edge of the sink. She wet it and applied soap before carefully taking one of Vechs's hands. He winced as she gently applied the sponge and began cleaning, refraining from pulling his hand back. When she had finished cleaning both hands, she put them back under the water as she left to get her first aid kit. She set it on the couch on her way back to the kitchen. She turned off the water and walked Vechs to the sofa, sitting next to him. He noticed that she sat a fair bit closer than she had the first time she had healed him, not that he minded. She opened the kit, drying his hands with a rag before she pulled out a small jar. Inside was a manila colored ointment, which she applied to his burn. It relived much of the pain from his hands.

Once his hands had been coated in the cream, she put the small container back into the case, pulling out a roll of clean, white bandages as she did. She slowly, methodically began wrapping his hands.

"Hey, I'm sorry for messing up your soup... And your kitchen." He said. She stopped covering his hands to look up at him, giving him a forgiving smile.

"It's fine, I'm more concerned about making sure your hands are okay. You got lucky the burn wasn't any worse, though, you should be a little more careful next time." She lightly scolded before returning to his hands. Within minutes, his hands had been wrapped from his wrists to the insides of his knuckles, and she put the bandages away before closing the first aid kit. "There, that should do it. The ointment should soothe most of the pain so that you can use your hands when you need to, but you shouldn't do anything vigorous with them for a while." He furled and unfurled his hands into loose fists, getting used to the feeling. The dressing was somewhat flexible, and most of his original mobility was retained.

"Thank you, Doctor Aurey." He joked as she stood up. It eased a small giggle out of her as she put the white box away.

"The kitchen is going to take a while to clean up, so why don't we eat lunch, and hopefully the blizzard will have let up by the time we finish." She said as she scanned over the kitchen.

"No, I can help you clean, since I did make the mess." Vechs said has he got up, moving towards Aurey. She turned to him.

"You can't do any hard work with your hands, remember?" She reminded him, before quickly tacking on, "Doctor's orders." He smiled at her joke, even if he had just used it moments before. The pair walked to the table, where Aurey helped served Vechs some salad. It wasn't a very filling lunch, but Aurey wasn't about to try and cook in her soup-ruined kitchen. Around half way through lunch, the storm finally calmed down, and when they had finished, they walked to the door together.

"Thanks, Aurey. For everything." He said, a smile coming to his face. Aurey smiled as well.

"Oh yeah, of course." A slightly awkward silence formed between the two.

"Well, I should probably go before the blizzard kicks back up." He said.

"Yeah, I guess you should." She said, a faint hint of sadness in her voice. Now that she had finally recognized her feelings for him, saying goodbye caused a pang in her chest.

"Yeah, I guess. See you later, Aurey."

"Bye, Vechs." He turned and walked out the door. As he was walking down the porch steps, a stroke of bravery came over Aurey. She ran out behind him without thinking.

"Wait Vechs!" He turned at her voice, and she panicked, saying the first thing that came to mind. "Y-you, um, forgot your scarf." He looked down at his neck, where the fuzzy blue cloth was wrapped. His face showed his confusion.

"No, I didn't, it's right here." He said, motioning towards it with one hand.

"U-um, well," she stammered out. _Think of something to say! _ "I-I know, but—well, um..." she said, realizing how big of a mistake she had made. As she stood there trying to think of something, a similar stroke of courage hit Vechs, giving him a crazy idea. _Well, it's worth a shot._ He thought, deciding to trust it. He bent down to even his face with Aurey's, then leaned in to press his lips to hers, closing his eyes as he did. The action surprised Aurey, and at first, her instincts told her to pull away. But she did the opposite, leaning into Vechs and closing her eyes. She reached up to clasp her hands behind his neck to hold him there, and as she did, he put his hands behind her back and gently pulled her closer. The kiss lasted for an eternity that wasn't nearly long enough, and neither one wanted to break away from the other. They stopped to catch their breaths, arms still clasped around each other, Vechs leaning his forehead on Aurey's. Neither person said a word as they stood there, wanting the moment to last forever. But of course, it couldn't, and eventually the two let go of each other. They still stood very close together, however.

"So, does this mean we're, you know, dating now?" Aurey asked, looking up at Vechs.

"I guess so, if you want us to be." He answered, trying to keep a casual atmosphere. So that was it, he was giving her the choice. Her heart told her to immediately say yes, but her brain told her to weigh out the two options first. She trusted him, so there wasn't an issue there. It was obvious they liked each other, and if she did decide to say no, things in their friendship could potentially become awkward. But it could become just as awkward if they were to date. She could tell he was getting anxious to hear her answer, so she finally gave her verdict.

"Yes Vechs, I want us to be dating." He beamed at her response, pulling her in for a hug. She smiled as he did, accepting his embrace. When they broke apart, both of them were smiling. The smiles faded when a chilling wind blew by, reminding them that Vechs needed to leave soon.

"So, I'll see you later then, Aurey." He said before gently pulling away.

"Yeah, I guess so, Vechs," she replied with a small smile. She watched as he left, and despite the freezing winds blowing around her, the warmth she felt inside kept her from feeling cold. She stood there, reliving the kiss, over and over again. When she finally went inside, she walked to the tomato soup disaster area, where the mess from lunch was refreshed in her memory. She sighed. This was going to take a while.

* * *

A/N: Vetches is and always will be derpy, don't you forget it! XD And I will say, in writing this chapter, I learned that I have a rather weak stomach. And it only took one picture of a hand to make me realize (the hand was black, like charred meat, for your information). Last time I do research before writing, at least on medical stuff (yeah, yeah, yeah, occupational hazard, whatever). But the first four chapters were just kind of cutesy introductions, now things are going to happen (it's still going to be very cutesy/fluffy though, don't worry.) :P


	6. Chapter 6: Breaking The Ice

Oh. My. Goodness. Guys, I am sosososo sorry for not getting this out. I'm honestly not overly happy with how it turned out, I had almost all of it written (apart from the last paragraph or so) and then the devil disguised as Writer's Block decided to come stay in my brain for a week, and then soccer (and school) snuck up on me, and then at that point, I was just clueless how I was going to end this chapter, so this chapter has actually been rewritten twice, and the third draft had some major edits made to it as well, and... arrgh, I'm just not happy with myself. And because I felt really bad about this being around 3 weeks late, I decided to just end the chapter where it was, so it is short, and honestly pretty lousy. I will possibly go back and do some major edits to this in the future, but for now, here ya go.

Sorry it stinks, I promise the next one will be better. Please don't hate me? At least not a lot...? (Though I understand if you do...) :'(

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Ever since their kiss, Vechs and Aurey had been spending more time with each other than ever before. They were around each other nearly every day. About a week after it, they organized their first date as an "official" couple. So when there was a knock at her door one day, she knew exactly who it was.

"Hey, Vechs."

"Hey Aurey. You ready to go?" He asked. She retrieved her scarf from its hook and nodded. Once she had wrapped it around her neck, Vechs reached for her hand with one hand and reached around her to close the door with his other. As they began the walk to spawn, Vechs started a conversation.

"So, are you excited?"

"Well, I guess so." She said, sounding unsure. Vechs picked up on the uncertainty in her voice.

"Hey, I'm sure you'll be a natural." He reassured her. Despite his reassurance, Aurey was still unsure. She had never been ice skating before, so when Vechs first asked her, she didn't jump on the idea. But he eventually convinced her that it would be fun, and she gave in, saying she would go. And as they neared the frozen pond, she began to have second thoughts on her decision. He led her forward, pulling ice skates off the shelf for both himself and Aurey. He helped her put her skates on before putting on his own, allowing her to get used to the feel of hobbling along on the thin blades. They walked to the pond together, Vechs supporting Aurey, who could've been mistaken for a small child first learning to walk. Aurey stopped once they were on the edge of the ice, leaning against a tree for support. Vechs continued onto the ice, carefully stepping with one foot, then the other, picking up momentum and spinning a small circle, sliding to a stop when he faced Aurey. He held out his hand to her.

"C'mon, it's easy. Trust me." He coaxed, talking softly, yet reassuringly. One of her arms slowly began to unwrap itself from the trunk of the tree to reach out for his hand, and the rest of her came with it. She placed one foot on the ice, the sudden transfer to the wet, slippery surface causing her leg to wobble slightly. She quickly reached for his other hand as she stepped onto the ice and the two of them stood there, facing each other. Once Aurey had settled (well, as much as you could while standing on ice with only a sliver of metal holding you up), Vechs gently leaned backwards, pulling her with him as they began to slowly slide along the surface. Aurey's muscles tightened slightly at the movement, but relaxed as she got used to the pace, Vechs gently pulling her along. A small giggle escaped her mouth as she began to enjoy the situation more and more with each passing second.

"See, it's not bad at all." He said with a smile. Her nose and cheeks were colored with a bright red from the cold, and she smiled back at him as she shook her head.

"No, I guess not." She said with a small laugh, and Vechs noticed that for the first time that day, she didn't sound anxious.

"Okay, well let's try this," he said. He gently began pulling his hands away from hers, but she quickly grabbed them back, her cheeks becoming even redder as she blushed slightly. She gave a quick shake of her head, and Vechs let out a small sigh. They continued slowly around the edge of the pond. He continually tried to separate himself from Aurey, but it was to no avail. He eventually just gave up, but the situation wasn't a total loss; it was the first time he had been this close to Aurey, had this much contact with her, for an extended period of time, and he liked it.

After they had been around the circle a couple of times, Vechs decided to try and let go of just one of her hands. She held on at first, but then reluctantly released him. Their pace slowed as Aurey adjusted to the new feeling. She began to pick up her foot and attempt a walking motion, but she fell towards Vechs, knocking him to the ground. They laid for a few moments, Aurey on top of Vechs, before her cheeks grew redder from embarrassment. She moved off of him, Vechs smiling as he sat up. She stuttered out an apology.

"S-Sorry, I didn't mean to—" She was silenced by Vechs pressing a light kiss to her forehead. He pushed himself off the ground, pulling her up once he had settled himself.

"Here, like this." He said once his hand was safely in hers again. Aurey watched as he slowly pushed his right foot out and away from his body, shifting his weight to it as he repeated the motion with his left. The movement created a rhythmic swaying motion, and Aurey began to move her feet in unison with his, slow, small motions at first, but gradually picking up speed. She became very focused as she matched the rhythm. So focused, in fact, that she didn't notice when he gently slipped his hand away from hers, her arm still suspended in air, her hand holding on to an invisible one. He slowed to a stop and watched as she skated, a satisfied smile forming on his face. She snapped back into reality once she noticed that Vechs was no longer beside her. The smile faded from his face as she saw her suddenly stop and crumple to the ice. She had made it about twenty yards from him, and before he could get to her, someone else was helping her up.

"Hey, are you alright?" It was Guude who had helped her, and she smiled as he pulled her back to her feet.

"Mmhm, thanks." She said, nodding her head as she did. She turned and slid over to Vechs. He suddenly remembered he hadn't taught her how to stop, and she crashed into him, the impact nearly knocking him down. He instinctively put his arms around her to keep himself from falling, and Guude raised his eyebrows slightly at the "hug". As Guude skated over, Vechs noticed some of the other Mindcrackers were watching from the outskirts of the pond, and his face reddened, the additional color going unnoticed through his already tomato-colored cheeks.

"Hey, Aurey, you okay?" He asked, trying to break the silence that had formed. He released her, dropping his arms to his side, attempting to make it look casual. She turned and slipped to his side, facing Guude. One of her hands snaked its way into his, holding it gently. It was her way of establishing that she wasn't going to be letting go of him anytime soon—not that he minded. A sly grin spread across Guude's face.

"My my, aren't we close?" he teased, his grin widening. He saw their faces get even redder, and his face relaxed as he moved closer. "Relax, guys, I'm just kidding. I'm happy for you two." he said, patting Vechs on the back. They looked at him questioningly. They hadn't out-right told anyone they were dating, so they wondered how Guude knew. He picked up on the question they sent him. "Oh, come on, it's pretty obvious that you two are together. It's not like you try to hide it," he said, gesturing at their clasped hands. They quickly released each other, their faces a mix of surprise and embarrassment. Guude reached out, grabbing the now-unclasped hands and putting them back together. He gave a soft smile. "It's nothing to be ashamed of, I'm sure all the others would be happy for you." He skated off, leaving the two alone. They stared at each other, dumbfounded. Vechs was the one to finally break the silence.

"So, do you want to keep skating?" He asked awkwardly, his eyes still on Aurey. She looked from the edges of the pond, where people had previously been standing and watching, to the sun, which was still fairly high in the sky. She turned and gave him a small nod, and he smiled as he and Aurey took off again. This time, Aurey would occasionally squeeze Vechs's hand to be sure that he was still there. And every time she did, he was still there, right by her side as they skated.


End file.
